Co-op News for August 14, 2018

Co-op News for August 14, 2018

Replacing the Greyhound Bus might involve co-ops

Community co-ops or a hybrid of private and public buses might be solutions to B.C.’s sudden Greyhound bus crunch, say transportation professionals and experts.

Greyhound announced it is pulling out of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba by the end of October, leaving governments, passengers and local bus companies in shock.

Anthony Perl, a professor at Simon Fraser University, thinks B.C. should look to “micro-models” like community co-ops, which could operate smaller vehicles and provide flexible employment to locals.

Big companies like Greyhound can’t operate anything other than large buses, and if they’re not full, that’s a problem. But Perl said a non-profit co-operative could be successful in linking small towns together.

Social enterprises need more than good intentions to go the distance

When Nova Scotia’s Stone Hearth Bakery was established in 1982, it really didn’t have a term to describe its business model.

Fast forward 36 years, and the bakery is one of many businesses that fall under the social enterprise banner, a term used to describe businesses or organizations that have a social, environmental or cultural purpose.

Despite their growing awareness and popularity, not every social enterprise succeeds.

David Upton, a member of The Social Enterprise Network of Nova Scotia’s secretariat, says a number of issues face social enterprises.

Running a business from a business perspective is a technical process, says Upton. What it requires is critical thinking and an understanding of both internal and external forces, such as cash flow, products and price to run.

Upton says the biggest social business problem is monetary. If an organization doesn’t have proper financial support, it’s going to fail.